Steve Martin has had one of those careers that would make many a flash-in-the-pan entertainer jealous. Stand-up comedy, film stardom, music success, literary acclaim, and television fame — you name it, and Martin has probably done it. His eclectic career turned into a recipe for longevity.
Apple TV+ recently debuted a documentary that covers Martin’s fascinating career in a compelling and creative way. “Steve! (Martin) A Documentary in 2 Pieces” clocks in at just over three hours, and its two parts provide a rollicking look at a career that has spanned almost 60 years. The documentary also charts his personal and professional growth over the decades.
The retrospective comprises two parts: “Then” and “Now.” Though they divide up neatly by time, almost identical in length, they’re not as cleanly divided thematically.
“Then” explores Martin’s early life and stand-up career, beginning with his early life and ending with his decision to abandon the stage for a film career. It explores his heartbreaking home life with a dad who didn’t show any affection to his job at Disneyland as a pre-teen and teenager. Martin demonstrates how he translated a youthful obsession with magic tricks into a comedy career.
We see the early evolution of his stand-up material and how he created a multimedia persona even on the stand-up stage. Martin took a different approach from the hyper-political comedy of the late 1960s; instead, his humor was absurdist and silly, which set him apart. He went from an opening act for pop and rock bands to a headliner who sold out California theaters and appeared on “The Tonight Show.”
As Martin’s career progressed, he became increasingly anxious and alienated. He found his worth in chasing the next level of adulation and applause, which took a toll on him. When the opportunity to write and star in “The Jerk” came around, he tasted film success and decided that it was time to leave the world of stand-up for a Hollywood career — and that’s where “Then” leaves us as it ends.
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The second part, “Now,” is somewhat less linear than the first episode. Martin does explore his films roughly chronologically, but director Morgan Neville intersperses the career retrospectives with glimpses into Martin’s life today. Conversations with Jerry Seinfeld, Martin Short, and Martin’s longtime friend Victoria Dailey provide insight into how he has developed personally and professionally.
Seeing his satisfaction with his current career is pleasing to watch. We don’t see much about “Only Murders in the Building,” largely because much of the documentary’s filming took place before the show had become a hit, but we do watch Martin and Short working on their two-man show. The scenes where the two funnymen test one-liners are gold, as are the shots of Martin showing Short sites around Los Angeles and the duo biking around Santa Monica.
Martin’s relationships tell their own story here. He spent much of the ’70s and ‘80s alone, afraid to connect with women despite a handful of high-profile relationships. He doesn’t dwell on his first marriage to Victoria Tennant much, but the tenderness of his second marriage to Anne Stringfield and his interactions with his daughter (who appears in animated form) is heartwarming. The scenes that deal with his relationship with his dad are equally poignant.
The transformation of Martin’s personality is on display in the documentary as well. His insecurities and anxiety are on display during his younger days, as his standoffishness with the press and fans and his often smarmy delivery in interviews in the ‘80s proves. But as he gets older, Martin becomes more comfortable in his own skin, with others, and even with members of the media as he ages.
“My whole life has been backwards,” he admits at one point. “How did I go from riddled with anxiety in my 30s to 75 and really happy?”
Most comics are complex people, and Steve Martin is no exception. But watching his ups and downs on display in this documentary made me realize how fascinating and unique he really is. Check out “Steve! (Martin) A Documentary in 2 Pieces” on Apple TV+.
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